TED Radio Hour How the creator economy is making you talk like the internet
12 snips
Nov 14, 2025 
In this engaging discussion, online linguist Adam Aleksic, known as Etymology Nerd, unpacks how social media shapes language. He reveals the secrets behind viral content, like mastering storytelling and delivery. Adam explains 'AlgoSpeak,' identifying how algorithms influence our speech and create euphemisms. He discusses the rise of influencer accents and the tensions between trending slang and educational content. With insights on radicalization and the subversion of algorithms, Adam advocates for media literacy in the digital age.
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Algorithm-Friendly Storytelling Wins
- Adam Aleksic shows that 'algorithm-friendly' delivery—hooks, simplified storytelling, and energetic pacing—drives virality.
- The same content framed with 'you' and a single narrative performs much better on social platforms.
Censorship Fuels New Euphemisms
- Platform moderation and detection shape new euphemisms like "unalive" to avoid suppression.
- These algorithm-driven words can then spread offline and enter schoolrooms as ordinary vocabulary.
What 'Algo Speak' Means
- 'Algo speak' describes language shaped both by platform incentives and emergent user behavior.
- Algorithms create in-groups and incubators where novel language forms and trends propagate rapidly.
